Justin Conway isn’t much for talking about himself, and that sort of selflessness is part of the reason he earned the Russellville Police Department’s Officer of the Year.

Conway repeatedly impressed his peers over the 12 months with a diligent work ethic that found him both assisting citizens in service calls and putting in extra time following up on felony and misdemeanor crimes.

“One of the great things about Officer Conway, which for sure was a major aspect in him getting Officer of the Year, was his due diligence in making sure he goes the extra mile in every call he’s involved in,” said Drew Latch, RPD Public Information Officer. “It’s just great having an officer that cares and puts the forethought and the afterthought into each call.”

When asked about why he doesn’t like to talk about himself, Conway gave a characteristically terse response.

“It’s just not the way I was brought up,” he said. “Brag on others, not yourself.”

Conway was raised in Danville by military parents who instilled both a work ethic and a sense of duty in the future police officer.

“It was a strict household,” he said. “You were told to do your work, do it when you’re supposed to, get it right the first time, and find something else to do when you’re done.”

After graduating from Danville High School, he joined the National Guard and served two tours in Iraq, a formative experience for him as he moved from teenage to adult life.

“The military helped me grow up,” he said. “It helped me become more responsible and more accountable.”

Conway got his first law enforcement job with the Yell County Sheriff’s Department, a chance to apply to his work lessons learned both from his family and the military.

He worked his way up from jailing to dispatch to reserve officer, and when he heard RPD was hiring roughly three-and-a-half years ago, he applied for the job.

“Russellville’s known for good training and advancement for career options,” he said.

RPD hired him as a patrol officer, and his work has been paying dividends ever since.

“It gives me the opportunity to give back to the community,” he said. “I try to help others out and not take for granted the things that I was given.”

“He’s caring and always concerned about other officers and the community more than himself,” Latch said. “It’s just something we want all of our officers to follow almost as a blueprint on how to become a police officer.”

That caring has been put on display many times, most notably in an incident which occurred about a year ago.

He received a call of a suicidal person, and Conway was able to convince the person not to kill themselves and seek help.

“I still keep in contact with that person to this day, and he doesn’t have any problems now,” he said. “It made me realize that what you do not only affects you and the other officers on the street, but it affects the people in the community as well and some of them depend on you.”

And Conway is anything but complacent after earning the title of Officer of the Year.

“It’s a lot of responsibility,” he said. “You’ve got to step up and be an example and make sure you do the right thing. Answer the calls when they’re given out, volunteer to help my partners out on the street, make sure they don’t get behind on their work, and make sure I’m there for them if they need anything. And just do the job the best I can.”